Ohio State's Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Julian Fleming Game-Time Decisions Against Arkansas State

Five other Buckeyes will be unavailable against the Red Wolves, including wide receiver Kamryn Babb and cornerback Jordan Hancock.

Ohio State will wait until pregame warmups to see if junior wide receivers Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Julian Fleming are able to play against Arkansas State, as they’re both listed as game-time decisions against the Red Wolves.

Since the Buckeyes are 44.5-point favorites, it would be a surprise to see Smith-Njigba – who suffered a hamstring injury in the first quarter of last week’s win over Notre Dame – take a snap on Saturday.

“I’ll leave it up to the doctors and medical professionals, but we will not bring him back if there’s any risk of him getting hurt further for the future,” head coach Ryan Day said this week. “We’ll make sure he’s 100 percent before we put him back in again.”

Fleming, meanwhile, is likely chomping at the bit to play this week after participating in warmups but then not appearing in the game. He notably separated his shoulder during a scrimmage this fall but appeared healthy otherwise.

On the other hand, fifth-year senior wide receiver Kamryn Babb and sophomore cornerback Jordan Hancock are both unavailable this week after suiting up for Ohio State last Saturday.

They join fifth-year senior cornerback Lloyd McFarquhar, redshirt sophomore defensive end Mitchell Melton and redshirt freshman running back Evan Pryor on the weekly status report.

McFarquhar’s ailment is unknown, while Melton and Pryor are out for the season with knee injuries suffered in the annual spring game and fall camp, respectively. 

Ohio State Availability Report Vs. Arkansas State

Game-Time Decision:

• Junior wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba (hamstring)
• Junior wide receiver Julian Fleming (undisclosed)

Unavailable:

• Fifth-year senior wide receiver Kamryn Babb (knee)
• Sophomore cornerback Jordan Hancock (leg)
• Fifth-year senior cornerback Lloyd McFarquhar (undisclosed)
• Redshirt sophomore defensive end Mitchell Melton (knee)
• Redshirt freshman running back Evan Pryor (knee)

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